Chandigarh ranked first in the country in the Goods and Service Tax (GST) collections by registering 89.67% filing of GST returns in the first six months of the current financial year, from April 1 till September 30. 

According to the records, Chandigarh has around 30,000 GST number holders from different segments, but automobile industry, sanitaryware manufacturers, screw manufacturers, electronics and hotels are the core areas from where the union territory gets maximum GST revenue. Out of these 30,000 registered GST entities, 18,000 come under the purview of the excise and taxation department of the Chandigarh administration, while the remaining 12,000 are under the central government. 

Since the launch of GST in 2017, Chandigarh has topped the chart in the first half of 2019-20 fiscal, leaving behind Punjab, Gujarat, and Haryana. In the first six months of the current financial year as per the records, recovery of GST under Chandigarh administration is estimated at 94.70%, while for the Centre the number stands at 84.64%, hence giving an average of 89.67%.

While sharing the strategy to attain this huge success the senior officer monitoring the exercise said that different teams of the department have been working rigorously to ensure maximum (GST) recovery. Besides the major manufacturers, automobile industry and other major players, we keep a constant check on the small businessmen as well. Consistent checks on deceptive firms also played a crucial role in finding tax evaders. The department has not given registration number to just any company or business entity without making an on-spot visit to ensure its existence. Moreover, the recently started E-Way billing system has brought a huge change and its reports are playing an important role in catching the tax evaders.